SPRINGFIELD, Mass. — A Maine man charged with setting fire to a Massachusetts church with a predominantly Black congregation was driven by racial animus, according to court documents.
This image included in an FBI affidavit shows church arson suspect Dushko Vulchev of Houlton, Maine, allegedly stealing a tire from a car in Springfield, Mass., in December 2020. Vulchev was indicted by a federal grand jury on Thursday on four counts of damaging religious property “because of the race, color, and ethnic characteristics” of those associated with the church. Photo provided by FBI via Associated Press
Dushko Vulchev of Houlton, Maine, was indicted by a federal grand jury Thursday on four counts of damaging religious property “because of the race, color, and ethnic characteristics” of those associated with the church, and one count of using fire to commit a federal felony.
An email seeking comment was left with his federal public defender.
Authorities allege he set a Dec. 28, 2020 blaze at the Martin Luther King Jr. Presbyterian Church in Springfield that caused extensive damage. Authorities say he set had previously set several smaller fires at the church.
Investigators who examined his electronic devices “identified numerous examples of communications that demonstrated racial animus towards Black people,” according to court documents.
It is about 360 miles from Houlton to Springfield.
Vulchev, a naturalized citizen from Bulgaria, was charged in 2016 with kidnapping and domestic assault in Maine, where he allegedly held a woman captive. The kidnapping charge was dismissed but he was sentenced to 258 days in jail for assault and other charges. He also pleaded guilty in federal court to threatening Bulgarian officials.
Comments are not available on this story.
Send questions/comments to the editors.
